Hey Kids! We offer a wide range of outdoor activities throughout the year. Please contact us and register for our Hunter Education Classes or the upcoming Summer Tractor Pull.

In addition, please participate in the following online activities we have provided below:

NOTE: Some of our activities require multi-media plug-ins. Click here to get plug-ins and allow our Multimedia Assistant to determine if your computer has the necessary software to use all of the online activities we have to offer.

Youth Activity No. 1:
Take our New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Quiz!
Click the image below to take our quiz:



Youth Activity No. 2:
Prove that you're the sharpest shooter!
Click the image below to play TRAPSHOOT:



Youth Activity No. 3:
Collect the Red Stars & Blue Bonuses to get as many points as possible!
Click the image below to play SNAKE:



Youth Activity No. 4:
Move RED flashing BALLS into ENERGIZER then JUMP into it to go to NEXT LEVEL.
Click the image below to play Aqua Energizer



Youth Activity No. 5:
FISH FACTS: The Largemouth Bass

The Largemouth Bass is the most highly pursued game fish in North America. It's scientific name is Micropterus salmoides. The current world record is 22 lbs. 4 ozs. (caught from an oxbow lake off the Ocmulgee River called Montgomery Lake on June 2, 1932 by George Perry near Jacksonville, Georgia). That is one of the most sough-after records in the fishing world.

Knowing more about the Largemouth Bass will help you catch more.

Found in all types of fresh water, from small farm ponds to the largest of lakes, from small irrigation ditches to large rivers and streams, the Largemouth Bass can also be caught under many varying types of water conditions, from the very warm water of summer to the frozen iced over lakes in the winter. Ideal water temperatures are 65° to 75° Fahrenheit.

The Largemouth Bass is probably one of the most exciting fresh water fish to catch, from the little slow tug on your line through the ice, to the exploding water around your top water plug. The Largemouth is a thrill a second!


The Largemouth Bass

LARGEMOUTH BASS FACTS:

1. In shallow water they can detect color, especially RED.

2. In one study red and white lures caught 3 times as many largemouths as any other color.

3. Their eyes absorb more light than the human eye, enabling the fish to see its food in dim light or total darkness.

4. They can see in all directions except directly below or directly behind them.

5. In clear water they can see 30 feet or more.

6. They will usually hold on to a soft-bodied, artificial worm longer than a metal lure.

Youth Activity No. 6:
FISH FACTS: The Catfish

Catfish are any of about 31 families and 2,000 species of fish belonging to the order Siluriformes, most of which are found in freshwater. Distributed throughout the world, they are most diverse in South America. Catfish are distinguished by the presence of barbels, or "whiskers"; the lack of true scales; strong spines at the front of the dorsal and pectoral fins; and, in most cases, an adipose fin on top of the body, in front of the caudal fin. The body is usually partly to completely armored. Most catfish have small eyes and therefore rely on taste, smell, and hearing. The barbels and much of the skin are often covered with taste buds. Many catfish are inactive during the day, coming out to feed at night. Freshwater catfish usually spend much of their time (and lay their eggs) in hollow logs, undercut banks, and other hiding places; if these are removed, catfish populations decline. One or both parents guard the eggs until they hatch. The eggs are usually large, 2 to 10 mm (0.1 to 0.4) in diameter; males of some marine catfish species brood their eggs in the mouth. Many species of freshwater catfish are used for human food. North American catfish of the genus Ictalurus are important commercially and are popular with anglers. Spawning usually takes place in late May or early June when the water temperature reaches 75° Fahrenheit.

Knowing more about the Catfish will help you catch more.

Choices of bait include blood worms, dead minnows, night crawlers, catfish paste, crayfish, snails, cut bait, living or dead fish, and the numerous dough baits available. Most breeds of catfish are opportunistic when they are young, feeding on almost anything they can their barbels onto. As catfish grow older, however, their tastes begin to mature and they will feed almost exclusively on other fish, living or dead. Therefore the most effective baits for older catfish are shrimp, cut bait, minnows, and pan fish (Cut bait consists of slices of a dead fish's muscle from behind the gills). These are definitely the cheapest baits to acquire. Find a spot on the body of water that seems to attract many minnows or sunfish (usually shining a flashlight into the lake at night will entice many bait fish to the surface), and use a throw net to catch them. Use these fish as your bait.

   
The Blue Catfish                                             The Channel Catfish

CATFISH FACTS:

1. Blue Catfish feed more by taste and touch than by sight. Blues can exceed 100 pounds.

2. Channel Catfish feed more by taste and touch than by sight and rarely exceed 50 pounds.

3. Females lay about 10,000 eggs each.

4. UPDATE - WORLD RECORD: Fishermen in northern Thailand have caught the biggest catfish on record -- a 646-pound (293-kg) giant
    the size of a grizzly bear (see Image I below).

Also, Tim Pruitt, of Alton, Ill., caught a 124 lb. blue catfish May 22, 2005. The fish was 58" long and 44" around (see Image II below).

Image I: The Mekong Catfish (646 lb. world record: caught by Fishermen in northern Thailand.)


Image II: The Blue Catfish (124 lb. blue catfish world record: caught by Tim Pruitt, of Alton, Ill.)

General Fishing Regulations (New York State)